The List 7421
To All
Good Tuesday Morning January 20, 2026. It is another clear and beautiful morning here today . with a high of 73 by 2..Winds are light. .Tomorrow our days will start cooling off and the clouds will start rolling in and the temps dropping with a good chance of rain on Friday and temps around 60. Most of the top yard is cleaned up and I filled every trash can I have .There are a few piles down below but that is an entirely different prospect.
.I hope that your week is going well wherever you live.
skip
.HAGD
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To All
I received the following from the Bear
Skip… For your consideration… run this interview for a day or two with the daily invite to tap into the RTR journal… please review and let me know what you think… Bear
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQcxP70jNMY
This is an amazing tribute..skip
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This day in Naval and Marine Corps History (thanks to NHHC)
Here is a link to the NHHC website: https://www.history.navy.mil/. Go here to see the director's corner for all 94 H-Grams.
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.January 20
1903 President Theodore Roosevelt issues an Executive Order placing Midway Islands under the jurisdiction of the Navy Department due to recurring complaints of Japanese squatters and poachers.
1909 Ship Fitter First Class George H. Wheeler and Boatswains Mate William H. Gowan display bravery and extraordinary heroism while fighting a fire and keeping it from spreading in Coquimbo, Chile. For their actions on this occasion, both men are awarded the Medal of Honor.
1914 The aviation unit from Annapolis, Md., under Lt. John H. Towers, as Officer in Charge, arrived at Pensacola, Fla., to set up a flying school.
1943 USS Brennan (DE 13) is commissioned. Originally launched as British destroyer escort Bentinck (BDE-13), she is reallocated to the United States and serves as a training ship in the Miami, Fla., area for student officers and prospective crews of destroyer escorts.
1944 USS Batfish (SS 310) and USS Gar (SS 206) attack Japanese convoys and sink transport Hidaka Maru south of Shiono Misaki and army cargo ship Koyo Maru about 50 miles south-southwest of Palau.
2017 By a 98-1 vote, the Senate confirms retired Marine Corps Gen. James Mattis to be the 26th secretary of defense. He is sworn in shortly afterward. Mattis is the first retired general officer to hold the position since General of the Army George C. Marshall in the early 1950s.
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This Day in World History 20 January
1327 Edward II of England is deposed by his eldest son, Edward III.
1616 The French explorer Samuel de Champlain arrives to winter in a Huron Indian village after being wounded in a battle with Iroquois in New France.
1783 Britain signs a peace agreement with France and Spain, who allied against it in the American War of Independence.
1908 The Sullivan Ordinance bars women from smoking in public facilities in the United States.
1930 Charles Lindbergh arrives in New York, setting a cross country flying record of 14.75 hours.
1935 Belgium arrests some Nazi agitators who urge for a return to the Reich.
1941 Hitler meets with Mussolini and offers aid in Albania and Greece.
1942 Nazi officials meet in the Berlin suburb of Wannsee to decide the "Final Solution of the Jewish Question."
1944 Allied forces in Italy begin unsuccessful operations to cross the Rapido River and seize Cassino.
1945 The Allies sign a truce with the Hungarians.
1945 Franklin D. Roosevelt is inaugurated for his fourth term.
1946 France's Charles DeGaulle hands in his resignation.
1952 British troops occupy Ismalia, Egypt.
1954 Over 22,000 anti-Communist prisoners are turned over to UN forces in Korea.
1977 President Jimmy Carter is sworn in and then surprises the nation as he walks from the U.S. Capitol to the White House.
1981 Ronald Reagan is sworn in as president at the same time 52 American hostages are released from their captors in Tehran, Iran.
January 20
Iran Hostage Crisis ends
Minutes after Ronald Reagan's inauguration as the 40th president of the United States, the 52 U.S. captives held at the U.S. embassy in Teheran, Iran, are released, ending the 444-day Iran Hostage Crisis.
On November 4, 1979, the crisis began when militant Iranian students, outraged that the U.S. government had allowed the ousted shah of Iran to travel to New York City for medical treatment, seized the U.S. embassy in Teheran. The Ayatollah Khomeini, Iran's political and religious leader, took over the hostage situation, refusing all appeals to release the hostages, even after the U.N. Security Council demanded an end to the crisis in an unanimous vote. However, two weeks after the storming of the embassy, the Ayatollah began to release all non-U.S. captives, and all female and minority Americans, citing these groups as among the people oppressed by the government of the United States. The remaining 52 captives remained at the mercy of the Ayatollah for the next 14 months.
President Jimmy Carter was unable to diplomatically resolve the crisis, and on April 24, 1980, he ordered a disastrous rescue mission in which eight U.S. military personnel were killed and no hostages rescued. Three months later, the former shah died of cancer in Egypt, but the crisis continued. In November 1980, Carter lost the presidential election to Republican Ronald Reagan. Soon after, with the assistance of Algerian intermediaries, successful negotiations began between the United States and Iran. On the day of Reagan's inauguration, the United States freed almost $8 billion in frozen Iranian assets, and the hostages were released after 444 days. The next day, Jimmy Carter flew to West Germany to greet the Americans on their way home.
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From Vietnam Air Losses site for ..January 20. .
January 20: https://www.vietnamairlosses.com/loss.php?id=2686
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This following work accounts for every fixed wing loss of the Vietnam War and you can use it to read more about the losses in The Bear's Daily account. Even better it allows you to add your updated information to the work to update for history…skip Vietnam Air Losses Access Chris Hobson and Dave Lovelady's work at: https://www.VietnamAirLosses.com.
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This is a list of all Helicopter Pilots Who Died in the Vietnam War . Listed by last name and has other info https://www.vhpa.org/KIA/KIAINDEX.HTM
MOAA - Wall of Faces Now Includes Photos of All Servicemembers Killed in the Vietnam War
The site works, find anyone you knew in "search" feature. https://www.vvmf.org/Wall-of-Faces/
Wall of Faces Now Includes Photos of All Service members Killed in the Vietnam War
By: Kipp Hanley
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Thanks to YP
The Strafer
(A Midsummer Night's Scooter Dream)
Diving down through monsoon rain
gunsight centered on the train
cannons firing, red tracers find
the locomotive and the cars behind
Clouds of smoke, clouds of steam
Hateful, hellish midnight dream
floating fireballs searching back
seek to stop the swift attack
Pulling up and zooming clear
jinking because the flak is near
But rolling over and coming round
to finish killing what he's found
Rending metal, burning cars
bursts of bullets like flying stars
flare and flash like little suns
against a train that no longer runs
Then the firing comes to an end
no more ordnance to expend
cursing now because it's done
with more to do before he's won
He beckons others who have the taste
to pick iron bones, and not to waste
the leavings of a strafer's skill
airborne
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when I was first reading God Is My copilot by Robert Scott in my early teens he had a story in there that I never forgot.
He described catching a Japanese battalion sized group of soldiers marching in the rain through a cut in the mountains with steep sides. He let them get in and then started strafing back to front then did it front to back. He could see that the sides were so steep and slippery that they could not climb out so he kept going back and forth until he ran out of ammo. He had called on the radio to get more planes out there but he had not left many alive…..skip
BTW I read all of his books a couple more than once. When he was in his 60s he got to travel the great wall of china with permission from Mao. He managed to ditch his minders and spent a few weeks evading them until they finally caught him. They did let him go to the end where it goes in to the sea because he remembered seeing that from his P-40 many times.
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Thanks to Brett
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From the archives
There was an article someone sent me on these ladies of the night in the last couple of weeks but I found this one that went out a year ago and it is pretty good
NIGHT WITCHES: THE FEMALE PILOTS WHO STRUCK FEAR INTO THE NAZIS.
On June 22, 1941, ignoring a nonaggression pact between Stalin and Hitler, Nazi Germany launched Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union.
The Soviet Air Force, caught off guard was nearly destroyed. The German forces pushed into the Soviet Union using the largest invading force in the history of warfare. About four million troops waded into Russia from the west. By November, the Germany Army was within 19 miles of Moscow. Some three million Russians were taken prisoners and a large part of the Red Army was wiped out.
As the Soviet Union struggled to stop the German advance, on October 8th, 1941, Stalin ordered the formation of three all-women air force units based upon the recommendation of Marina Raskova. Raskova was an aviation heroine and considered the "Amelia Earhart" of the Soviet Union. She was the first female navigator in the Soviet Air Force.
Flying was popular in the 1930s and thousands of women belonged to flying clubs. But when Germany invaded Russia, Russian women weren't allowed in the Soviet Air Force even though they were allowed on the front lines in the army. Raskova received hundreds of letters from women protesting the prohibition. After all, if women were allowed to fight alongside men on the ground, why not in the air too? Raskova convinced Stalin that women needed to get involved in the fight. Women were to be the equal of their male counterparts in everything from being deck hands to flying airplanes.
While two of the units, the 586th Fighter Regiment, the 587th Bomber Regiment, inevitably became mixed-gendered, the 588th Night Bomber Regiment remained exclusively women for the entirety of its existence. Stalin could be considered progressive in 1941, long before it become popular, since the Soviet Union became the very first country to allow women to fly combat missions. Nearly 1,000 women, near the end of the war had flown missions in every type of Soviet aircraft. For years this was one of the best kept secrets of World War II and many would say helped turn the tide of the war.
Over 2,000 women applied and approximately 400 women, ranging in age from 17 to 25, were selected. They were trained in the small town of Engels north of Stalingrad at the Engels School of Aviation. They underwent a highly intense education—expected to learn in a few months what it took most soldiers several years to grasp. Each recruit had to train and perform as pilots, navigators, maintenance and ground crew.
These pilots were nicknamed the Nächthexen, or Night Witches, by their enemies. The only warning the enemy had before the bombs hit was an ominous whooshing sound. The "whoosh" sound was due to the fact that the women would cut the planes' engines as they approached, gliding in stealthily before dropping their bombs. They were so feared that any German who downed one of their planes was automatically awarded the prestigious Iron Cross medal.
These women embraced their nickname, and it emboldened them to continue their dangerous and often deadly missions. Night Witches was a badge of pride. Their missions, across the Eastern Front, were incredibly dangerous, especially considering how the women were equipped.
They were issued hand-me-down men's uniforms. Men's size 42 boots and had to tear up bedding to stuff into the end to make them fit properly. Officially, the women were treated just like their male counterparts – except they were given more soap! Many in the Soviet military still found the idea of women flying in combat to be laughable, despite their clear ability. Undeterred by the lack of faith from many of their male counterparts, the women embraced their identities. To show how confident and proud they were they celebrated their womanhood by drawing flowers on the sides of their planes and painted their lips with navigational pencils.
The 588th Night Bomber Regiment were given the obsolete two-seater Polikarpov PO-2 biplanes. The aircraft, made of wood and fabric, were slow and cumbersome. These planes were crop dusters from the 1920s and typically only used for training purposes. The planes' top speed was just 90 mph, and the weight of the bombs and crew they carried meant they had to fly low. If they were hit with a tracer bullet it could easily cause the plane to burst into flames. Some of the women would refer to their aircraft as "a coffin with wings." The aircraft offered no protection from the elements, and at night, the pilots had to endure sub-zero temperatures, freezing winds, and the risk of frostbite. During the harsh Soviet winters, just touching the icy plane carried the risk of having your skin torn right off.
They had no radar, no machine guns, no radios, and no parachutes. If they needed to bail out, they just hoped they were close enough to the ground to survive. All they had onboard was a map, a compass, rulers, stopwatches, flashlights, and pencils. In terms of defense munitions on board, there was little to none. Many pilots would have only a loaded pistol, typically leaving the last bullet for themselves, as suicide was preferable to being captured.
The regiment flew under the cover of darkness. Each night, a pilot and navigator looked for small fires or other flickering lights that gave away enemy camps. Then they'd throttle their engine to idle, quietly glide over the target and drop their bombs taking out the troops' encampments, storage depots and supply lines. Their gliding speed was so slow that they traveled at half the speed of a parachutist. And on the ground, the Germans had little warning except for the sound of the planes in "stealth" mode as they glided above their target.
At the peak of the 588th Night Bomber Regiment's strength, it had as many as 40 two-person crews, flying multiple bombing runs as soon as the sky darkened, taking part in as many as 18 in a single night. They would go out in groups of three, with two planes acting as decoys to draw the German searchlights and flack gun attacks away from the third. The one advantage the small, slow biplanes had was maneuverability, so they relied on fancy flying to create a diversion. When the navigator of the third plane tapped the pilot on the shoulder, she would kill the engine and silently swoop in for the bomb drop. The three planes would each take turns in this manner until all three planes had dropped their payloads.
From June 1942 to October 1943, they flew more than 23,000 combat sorties, collectively logging over 28,000 flight hours and dropping more than 3,000 tons of bombs and 26,000 incendiary shells on Nazi targets. Their bombing raids wreaked havoc on river crossings, railways, warehouses, fuel depots, armored cars, firing positions and other valuable logistical targets. They also made 155 food and ammunition supply drops to other Soviet armed forces. The 588th Regiment was highly decorated; of the 89 Soviet women who received the Hero of the Soviet Union award—the country's highest honor in WWII—22 were Night Witches.
The Night Witches utilized their slow speed to their advantage because it gave them greater ease of maneuverability. Furthermore, the planes sent against them were flying at much faster speeds. Thus the Germans only had a very small window of time to return fire before they had to make a wide turn to return for another run. The Night Witches took advantage of this interim to escape into the darkness.
Not all escaped. During the war, the Night Witches lost 32 pilots, including Colonel Marina Raskova when she was sent to the front line. When Raskova died, she was celebrated with the first state funeral of World War II and her ashes were buried in the Kremlin.
Twenty Three pilots were awarded the prestigious title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
These daring pilots were women of incredible skill and immeasurable courage. They cemented their place in history by accomplishing some of the most remarkable feats ever seen in aerial combat.
The Night Witches didn't have great planes, or superior bombs, or even very much support for their unit, but they nonetheless became one of the most remarkable fighting forces of World War II. No sorcery needed. They were simply Bad Ass!
LIVE STREAM BROADCAST!
"Night Witches"
THE FEMALE PILOTS WHO STRUCK FEAR INTO THE NAZIS
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. From the archives. Something you rarely see
Thanks to Harry …. And Dr.Rich
[At least he lost both of them at the same time .. we had a small bull walk up our driveway, stop for a second, and dropped one of his antlers … and then walked on a little crooked headed!! - RS]
Hardly an Earth-Shaking event but an event seen by few nonetheless ...........
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/nb-moose-sheds-antlers-1.6716287
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..Thanks to DR and Rich
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They may be traveling to Minnesota soon. About 1500 troops have been given a 'prepare to deploy' order. The violence and vandalism continues, and ICE facilities now have barricades along their entrance routes to keep protesters out. Mother Nature is helping, having dropped the temperatures so that a lot of hotheads have cooled off.
Protesters interrupted services at St Paul's church, St.Paul, MN, thinking the pastor was somehow connected with ICE. Don Lemon was among them.
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Left v Right
Men have maintained about the same levels of support for left or right as they had before. Women, however, especially white liberal women, have moved about 20 points to the left. This could affect elections, with a group that large shifting allegiances.
China
They are serious about controlling the seas near to their country. They have organized hundreds of fishing boats to form barriers on the sea to prevent other shipping from entering or using those waters. Clever tactic. Except that the fishermen will go broke, acting as walls, rather than catching fish.
China has also exploited 'birth tourism' in the US for a long time. We currently have about 1.5 million 'American' children born of Chinese parents. Those who can afford the journey are coming here to have babies, and thus gain citizenship for their offspring.
NYC
Things are not as rosy there as people would have you think. About 5000 businesses have packed up and moved out of the area in recent times. That takes employment, tax base and spending on local products out of NY.
Texas
They just discovered 'massive' new oil and gas fields in that state. This is huge. Pun intended. As oil companies (like Phillips 66 and Valero) depart California, and no new refineries being built there, California is facing a serious shortfall in fuel. When these oil companies depart completely, California loses about 20% of capacity. In the short term, they are importing oil from overseas. That makes the state dependent on foreign trade, and does not improve their manufacturing base - the state is a consumer, not a producer. Several companies are looking into the possibility of using existing (not new, as California forbids new construction) pipelines to import oil and gas from places like Texas. That is good for Texas, and less harmful to California than being dependent on foreign sources. Combined with these new oil finds, and Texas could see another boom time.
Gaza
They are still trying to find a way to settle this mess. Trump has proposed a 'Peace Board' with members from many nations to govern the place for a time.
Most participants will have a three year term on the board. Those who pay up $1 billion can buy a permanent seat. It is a Band-Aid, not the tourniquet that is actually needed. But, we must take this one step at a time.
Rich
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.Thanks to Brett
Daily Memo: Chinese Economic Results, Developments in Syria
2025 growth reached Beijing's target, despite trade tensions.
By: Geopolitical Futures
Hitting the target. China's economy grew by 5 percent year over year in 2025, reaching 140.19 trillion yuan ($20.15 trillion) and meeting Beijing's target of "around 5 percent" annual growth. In terms of quarterly results, the economy expanded 4.5 percent in the fourth quarter, a three-year low. Value-added industrial output rose by 5.9 percent year over year, retail sales of consumer goods increased 3.7 percent, and the consumer price index stayed unchanged. Population growth fell for a fourth consecutive year, with the total number of births dropping to 7.92 million in 2025, down from 9.54 million in 2024.
Changes in Syria. Syrian troops seized key facilities in northeast Syria from the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces during an offensive over the weekend. Army forces appear in control of the al-Omar oil field, the country's largest, and the Conoco gas field, the main source of income for the Kurds, in the eastern province of Deir el-Zour. Also on Sunday, the Syrian government announced a nationwide ceasefire with the SDF. Under the deal, government forces will take control of civilian institutions, border crossings and oil and gas fields previously held by the SDF. The Trump administration had earlier warned the Syrian government against a renewed military offensive targeting U.S.-backed Kurdish forces, threatening to reimpose sanctions if the fighting continued.
Foreign engagement. Ahead of the announcement of the deal, U.S. special envoy Tom Barrack met with the SDF commander, Mazloum Abdi, in Irbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan. He also held talks with the regional president, Nechirvan Barzani, as well as the former president, Masoud Barzani, on the situation in Syria. On Saturday, Barzani spoke with the president of France on the matter.
Weighing the options. EU leaders will hold an emergency summit to discuss U.S. President Donald Trump's threat to impose 10 percent tariffs on eight European countries if Denmark continues to refuse to sell Greenland to the United States. More recently, he threatened to raise the levy to 25 percent if a deal is not signed by June 1. The bloc is hoping to settle on a coordinated response. One option is imposing counter tariffs covering 93 billion euros' ($108 billion) worth of imports from the U.S.
Final removal. U.S. troops have withdrawn from Iraq's Ain al-Asad air base, the Iraqi Ministry of Defense confirmed. The move was part of an agreement between Washington and Baghdad signed in 2024 for the U.S. to pull all its forces from the entire country, except for Iraqi Kurdistan.
'Huge problem.' Russian defense firm Kalashnikov Concern is struggling with a significant shortage of qualified personnel. The company's CEO said that, although it fulfilled its contract with the Russian state for 2025 on schedule, the lack of skilled workers was a "huge problem," not just for his firm but for the entire defense industry.
Gaza plan. Israel condemned the U.S. announcement of members for an executive committee of the Gaza "Board of Peace," saying it was not coordinated with Israel and ran contrary to its policy. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly instructed Foreign Minister Gideon Saar to discuss the matter with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Israel also objected to the inclusion of representatives of Qatar and Turkey in the executive board due to their connections to Hamas.
Pressure on Taiwan. Chinese special operations forces appeared to conduct a drill simulating the removal of Taiwan's leadership. A military channel of state broadcaster China Central Television aired footage that appeared to show troops practicing a night raid to capture simulated targets, as well as drone reconnaissance, a rapid assault on a building and neutralization of security guards. According to Nikkei Asia, the drills were intended to demonstrate Chinese forces' readiness for such operations and to exert pressure on the Taiwanese administration.
South Korea and Italy. South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni held talks on Monday. They agreed to boost industrial cooperation in the fields of artificial intelligence, aerospace, semiconductors, critical minerals, transportation and infrastructure.
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January 20
This Day in U S Military History
1783 – The fighting of the Revolutionary War ended. Britain signed peace agreements with France and Spain, who allied against it in the American War of Independence. The peace agreement between the US and England will not go into effect until England and France reach a settlement.
1943 – Japanese resistance on Mount Austen, Guadalcanal weakens. The garrison at the Gifu strongpoint has taken heavy losses from artillery.
1951 – After weeks of almost unbroken absence, MiGs appeared again over Korea, resulting on this date in the first encounter between USAF F-84s and CCF MiG-15s.
1954 – The CIA built a tunnel from west Berlin to East Berlin to tap Soviet and East German communications.
1972 – In continued efforts to disrupt an anticipated communist offensive, a contingent of more than 10,000 South Vietnamese troops begin a sweep 45 miles northwest of Saigon to find and destroy enemy forces. There was much speculation that the North Vietnamese would launch such an offensive around the Tet (Chinese New Year) holiday. Although the communists did not attack during the Tet holiday in early February, in March they launched a massive invasion involving more than 150,000 main force troops and large amounts of tanks and artillery pieces. The battles raged throughout South Vietnam into the fall and resulted in some of the fiercest fighting of the war.
2011 – The largest rocket ever launched from the U.S. West Coast blasted off on Thursday from Vandenberg Air Force Base, carrying a top secret satellite into orbit. The Delta IV Heavy rocket stood 23 stories tall, and its engines produced 2 million pounds of thrust, according to the 30th Space Wing of the U.S. Air Force. Blasting off at 1:10 p.m. Pacific time from Space Launch Complex-6 at Vandenberg in California, the rocket carried a payload for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
GOWAN, WILLIAM HENRY
Rank and organization: Boatswain's Mate, U.S. Navy. Born: 2 June 1884, Rye, New York. Accredited to: New York. G.O. No.: 18, 19 March 1909. Citation: For bravery and extraordinary heroism displayed by him during a conflagration in Coquimbo, Chile, 20 January 1909.
WHEELER, GEORGE HUBER
Rank and organization: Shipfitter First Class, U.S. Navy. Born: 26 September 1881, Charleston, S.C. Accredited to: South Carolina. G.O. No.: 18, 19 March 1909. Citation: For bravery and extraordinary heroism displayed by him during a conflagration in Coquimbo, Chile, 20 January 1909.
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for January 20 FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
20 January
1945: Brig. Gen. Haywood S. "Possum" Hansell is replaced as commander of the XXI Bomber Command by Maj. Gen. Curtis E. LeMay. Hansell, an excellent administrator, has suffered from inadequate numbers of aircraft, continuing mechanical deficiencies, and extremely strong high-altitude wind conditions that have negatively impacted bombing results
1946: A Pan American Airways Constellation clipper set a record from New York, N. Y., to Lisbon, Spain, for commercial planes by covering the 3,425 miles in 9 hours 58 minutes. (24)
1951: KOREAN WAR. The first encounter between USAF F-84s and Communist Chinese MiG-15s occurred. (28)
1959: Richard J. Scoles flew a Douglas RB-66A Destroyer from Ontario International Airport, Calif., to Andrews AFB, Md., in 3 hours 36 minutes for a new Federation Aeronautique Internationale cross-country record. He made a return flight in 4 hours 58 minutes two days later. (9)
1960: PROJECT BIG ARM. Early in January, the Soviet Union announced tests of more powerful rockets. Through 22 January, Pacific Air Forces employed KC-135, C-130, and RB-69 (P2V-7) aircraft to observe these tests. (17)
1962: A Strategic Air Command crew launched its first Titan I (a J-model) from Vandenberg AFB, Calif. (6)
From Skip…I actually saw the first flight of a Titan sort of I was living at Vandenberg AFB at the time and was walking my dog in an area where I could see across a long valley and see the Titan site and it was all lit up and a Titan was up out of the silo and there was white stuff streaming from the nose so I knew they were fueling it there were rumors that the first launch was going to be soon. My dog jumped and pulled on the leash. He heard the sound before I did and I looked back up to see a tremendous explosion and the missle came out of the explosion and started arching across the sky. It blew up two more times as it went across and then went into the ground. About three seconds later all the base alarms went off and I ran to the house and met my dad who was running to the car getting his uniform on. I told him what I had just seen and he jumped in the car and we did not see him for a couple of days. The next day I was on the golf course and there were lots of missile parts scattered about and picked up a couple. Nobody was injured but there were a couple of close calls. They had just sealed the last access door to the inside of the silo when it blew. The only found the gun and badge of the civilian guard as he had run away. My dad and his crew finally found the nose cone. His squadron was responsible for everything that went click click or boom on the top of a missile. The head of SAC was there in a very short time.
Of all the missile launches I saw that was the most spectacular……Skip
1966: Blanche W. Noyes, a Federal Aviation Administration marking specialist and pilot, became the first American aviatrix to receive the Brazilian Medal of Merit for service to Brazilian aviation. (5)
1970: The Federal Aviation Administration approved the Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet for commercial service. (5)
1974: When test pilot Phil Oestricher took the YF-16 Fighting Falcon out on a high-speed taxi test at Edwards AFB, the aircraft made an unplanned and unofficial first flight. (3)
1975: Teams began replacing 50 Minuteman IIs in the 564th Strategic Missile Squadron at Malmstrom AFB, Mont., with Minuteman IIIs. (6)
1982: The USAF signed its first B-1B production contract with Rockwell International. (1)
1988: The last of 100 B-1B bombers rolled of the assembly line at the Rockwell plant in Palmdale, Calif. (8) The USAF awarded a $606.6 million contract to McDonnell Douglas to build two productionmodel C-17s, the next generation transports. (8) Elbert Rutan, designer of the world circling "Voyager," unveiled his Advanced Technology Tactical Transport in a demonstration flight at Mojave, Calif. Rutan offered the lightweight, double-winged plane to the Air Force for consideration as a long-distance military transport. He produced the aircraft, with Beech Aircraft Corp., under a $2.5 million contract from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. (8)
1992: Through 25 January, a 60th Military Airlift Wing C-5 airlifted 56 tons of supplies from Japan to Mongolia, which suffered from shortages of health care resources. (16)
2001: Texas Governor and former Texas Air National Guardsman George W. Bush inaugurated as President of the US. He was the first former Air Guardsmen to become President. (32)
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Thanks to Dave and Shadow
UNBROKEN CHAIN OF EVENTS
A personal account of the USS Forrestal Fire
Capt. Dave Dollarhide USNR (Ret)
July 29, 1967 – "Fire on the Flight Deck"
It was our fifth day of combat operations on "Yankee Station." Unlike most arriving air wings, we had bypassed "Dixie Station" and the normal warm up period of close air support missions in South Vietnam. Air Wing Seventeen started right into flying large formation "Alpha" strikes to the more hostile North Vietnam targets. Today, I was scheduled on the 1100 launch, a 22 plane strike group, plus support aircraft.
Down in the VA-46 Clansmen's ready room, Gary Stark, Fred White, Denny Barton and I began to brief our part of the strike as a "division" of four. Herb Hope and John McCain were there briefing also, but as a different strike element. We had just learned we'd be dropping bombs left over from the Korean War. The M-65 was a 1,000# "fat" bomb, designed to be carried by propeller aircraft. We'd never seen these things and were unfamiliar, but someone gave us the correct gunsight setting, we finished the briefing and walked across the passageway to ride the escalator to the flight deck.
My A-4E, AA 417, was spotted on the port side, close to the LSO platform and as I began to preflight, I was taken back at the sight of the rusted M-65s on either wing. They were large in diameter and didn't seem to have the normal bumpy, insulated exterior seen on modern day bombs.
Nomex flight suits were not in the supply system at this point, so we were wearing Marine fatigues. My sleeves were turned up and I felt somewhat confident about the mission. My post engine start checks were completed and the Plane Captain had removed the ladder, some of the tie down chains, and departed the flight deck. With my canopy open in the one hundred degree heat, I was looking toward the VA-106 A-4 parked upwind and to my left. In the cockpit was "Crash" Dameworth, a friend.
Suddenly, above the noise of engines and wind, I heard a heavy "whump!" Due to no fault of the pilot, a Zuni rocket was accidentally fired from an F-4 across the flight deck, striking the 400 gallon external fuel tank of Fred White's A-4. This resulted in a violent fuel explosion and fire surrounding our airplanes. (When the F-4's first generator was energized during engine start, a current had surged out to the already armed rocket pod on his left wing, firing one rocket.)
Looking towards "Crash," I remember the fear on his face as he looked past me. I snapped my head around to see the flight deck engulfed in fire, with people scrambling out of the inferno. One of our VA-46 mechanics back peddled out of the flames just ahead of my right wing, terribly injured and burned. I was awash with panic. Throttle off…disconnect my torso harness…oxygen hose disconnected while rising up…and I literally dove out the left side of my cockpit. Eight feet later, I hit the deck like a bag of sand, breaking my hip and arm.
One or two people came to my aid, helping me stand and move to the center of the flight deck. Suddenly, they were gone and I was limping along solo when a "Green Shirt" from VF-11, Joe Patane, held out his arms. I lunged and we both fell to the deck in the vicinity of the number three arresting wire. My feet were now pointed toward the fire, maybe fifty feet away. The scene was horrific with people, airplanes and weapons engulfed in the fire. I could see that McCain was out of his airplane, but Gerry Stark and Fred White were still in their open cockpits.
Charges in the "ejector feet" of our bomb racks began to activate in the fire and bombs started to fall unarmed to the deck. However, due to the age of their high explosive material (HE), high order detonations quickly ensued in the burning jet fuel and in short order, the first of nine M-65 detonations occurred just those few feet away. 90 seconds had passed since the rocket had launched.
It had only been a few seconds since Patane had put out his arms. I don't recall any noise, just an instantaneous and violent shock wave that slid me up the deck a foot or so. I took shrapnel hits to my foot and hip. A glance upward showed the sky filled with debris. I began to rise and Patane said to stay down, but determined to leave the scene, I ran/hobbled my way forward and dove under a Phantom parked aft of the island. Someone came out and helped me to safety.
Just inside an island hatch, my flight gear was cut away and I was carried by Butch Massey (VA-65) down numerous ladders to Sick Bay Ward 2 on the second deck. The ship shuddered as the M-65s continued to explode. Brave crewmembers battled the blaze and just over my head, through the steel of the hangar deck, I could hear the noise of people yelling and pushing anything that could burn or explode overboard. Sick bay quickly filled with terribly injured friends and shipmates.
The battle to put out fires and save the ship continued for much of the day. Most, like me, were just survivors, but heroes abounded. All experienced their own version of this life changing experience. When it was over, one
hundred and thirty four shipmates were gone…Gerry, Fred and Denny among them. I was the only survivor from our flight.
Looking Back
It didn't have to happen! The Navy's worst peacetime accident could have been avoided or mitigated by corrective action at any one of several decision points. The following is a list of events that led to the accident.
•.. • As we proceeded to the combat zone a decision was made to short circuit normal arming procedures in exchange for expedience in meeting the "Alpha Strike" schedule. o Cannon plugs used with rocket pods were connected without the airplanes pointed in a safe direction. ▪ It was felt that the arming safety pin in the
•.. back of the pods was enough protection,
•.. but these pins were already known by
•.. many to malfunction, if the wind was
•.. blowing the attached warning flag.
•..
•.. o Deviating further, final arming of weapons was
•.. accomplished while airplanes were taxiing. (Just
•.. the day before the fire, an "AO" caught his foot
•.. under an F-4 main tire while arming rockets. He
•.. then fell in front of the wheel and lost his arm as the
•.. airplane continued to taxi over him. I was in the
•.. hospital with this sailor and know the story as
•.. related by him.)
•..
•.. • Someone at a very high level in the Department of Defense decided to expend bombs that had been in storage since the Korean War. o Bombs from that era did not have a proper thermal protective coating.
•.. o The high explosive (HE) material had become unstable due to storage conditions and time.
•.. o These bombs had been "high-lined" from an ammunition ship to the Forrestal the night before. One of the carrier's weapons department supervisors expressed serious concern about the age and volatility of the M-65s.
•..
A "JAG" investigation was completed, with the report containing some 7,000 pages. VA-46 and VA-106 had lost eleven Skyhawks and most surviving A-4s were damaged to some degree. I remember the total airplane losses in Air Wing Seventeen were around sixty million dollars. The cost of repairing Forrestal was huge and the loss of life, devastating. Over time, the Navy took many corrective actions as a result of the Forrestal accident…life saving procedures and policies that are still in place today, over fifty years later
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